July 5 marks the 50th anniversary of Algeria’s independence from France — the latter had ruled the former as a colony since 1830. The bitter, eight-year-long war that paved the way for Algerian freedom is immortalized in literature and film and its legacy looms large: an archetypal anticolonial struggle saw the strategic use of terrorist tactics as well as a brutal counter-insurgency campaign. The regime that came into power after France’s departure converted its revolutionary zeal into authoritarian control. TIME looks at pictures from the war for Algerian independence.
50 Years of Algerian Independence: Scenes from a 20th Century War
July 5 marks the 50th anniversary of Algeria's independence from France — the latter had ruled the former as a colony since 1830. The bitter, eight-year-long war that paved the way for Algerian freedom is immortalized in literature and film and its legacy looms large: an archetypal anticolonial struggle saw the strategic use of terrorist tactics as well as a brutal counter-insurgency campaign. The regime that came into power after France's departure converted its revolutionary zeal into authoritarian control. TIME looks at pictures from the war for Algerian independence.
REPORTERS ASSOCIES / Gamma-Keystone / Getty Images
Colonel Marcel Bigeard maintains radio contact with other paratrooper units in March 1956. A number of prominent French military commanders, including General Jacques Massu, would come to be studied for the ruthless, innovative techniques they employed to squelch the Algerian rebellion — even though those methods would eventually fail to keep Algeria under French control.
